January 14, 2024
There’s no greater way to get to know God, his goodness, and the life he has for us, than reading his living word, the Bible! Yet, most people don’t do it, right? Some people would say, “Well I don’t really believe.” Ok. But some who are believers don’t read it. Some Christians say, “I tried to read it, but it was boring,” or “It didn’t really apply to my life.” Some people have access to the Bible, but they either don’t take time to read it, or when they try, they don’t really understand it. Maybe the biggest reason Christians don’t faithfully study the Bible is they don’t know how to do it. Where do you start?
So, what a lot of people do is one of two things. Either they’ll start at the beginning of the Bible, they’ll start in Genesis. Which is interesting and exciting, and they’ll get to exodus, which is also interesting and exciting. After that they’ll get to Leviticus. And they’ll die of boredom in the Leviticus; they stop there!
Or the other thing people do is the “Lucky Dip” method. It’s when people say, “I’m just going to open the Bible and point to a verse and whatever that verse says, I’m going to do it!” So that’s what I’m doing right now, the Lucky Dip method. Whatever the verse says, I will do: Ezekiel 4:12, “And you shall eat it as a barley cake, baking it in their sight on human dung.” That is in the Bible! I preplanned that, but that is a verse. That’s the kind of thing that happens when you just put your finger in the Bible!
So, there’s a better way. What I want to do today and next week is to help you learn how to study the Bible. This could be a very important step in your journey with God! So, I want to ask you to be here next week. And if you can’t be here, because the weather is too bad, or the weather is too good in Florida, or there’s a game, could you watch it on Facebook?
We’re going to be studying a very short book in the New Testament, the book of filet mignon. It’s not really filet mignon, it’s really Philemon. And it’s better than filet mignon! Hebrews 4:12 says, “The word of God is living and active...” As you read the Bible, it will speak to you, guide you, renew you and build your faith! So today I’m going to give you five thoughts that we’ll apply to the book of Philemon. You can see them on the insert for the bulletin on “How to study the Bible.” We’re going to start by reading the scripture verse at the top: Let’s read together: For we have great joy and consolation in thy love, because the bowels of the saints are refreshed by thee, brother. What in the world does that mean, the bowels of the saints are refreshed by thee? A colon cleanse? An enema? That verse doesn’t make any sense at all!
So that gives us our first thought: chose a translation of the Bible you understand. That verse we just read is from the King James Version of the Bible. The Bible is written in three different languages: Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. It has to be translated into English. When do you think the King James Version translation was made? In 1611. Do you think the English language has changed since then? Back then, people thought that humans felt emotions in their bowels. Today people would say, “Well you probably feel emotions in your heart.” A more modern translation says, “brother, you have refreshed the hearts of the Lord’s people.” That makes sense! There are thousands of translations. In church we have the GNT or NIV Bibles. All translations are good. Just look for one that suits you, that you understand.
The second thing we’re gonna do is choose a time, place, and a plan to study the Bible. It doesn’t matter when, where, what or how long you study, but I recommend it be consistent. If you don’t have a consistent way you do it, you’re not likely to do it. The same time every day, in the same place: in a favorite chair, or at the kitchen table. Will you use a paper Bible, or use your phone? The middle of the back of the insert shows some resources you might use. You can take a devotional at church. Or the You Version Bible is digital, on your computer or an app on your phone. They have 32,000 plans for studying the Bible! Or I like SacredSpace.com. They give you short prayers, they help you slow down, read a passage, and help you get some meaning from it. There’s also an app for that. Or there’s a church, New Hope in Oahu, that has a devotional, you can read online, or let a guy with a soothing voice read it to you. They take you through the Bible in a year, and there’s a journal goes with it. If you would like a journal, I’ll get one for you! There are many plans out there, just pick what works for you!
The third thing we’re going to do is understand the context of what we read. The Bible is a collection of 66 different books, written in three languages: Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, over a 1,500-year period. It’s a collection of poems, prophecies, letters, laws, and histories written by people and inspired by God. And I want to say up front, there is some weird stuff in the Bible. So, what do you do with the violence in it, or the weird imagery in the book of Revelation? The short answer is we read the Bible in light of Jesus, his resurrection and his command: “Love each other as I have loved you.” Jesus is the center of our faith. We read the Bible to be more like Jesus, and to be more loving. We read the Bible, not to get a big head, but to get a big heart. God speaks through the Bible to help us be more loving. And you can find people to help you understand the weird stuff in the Bible.
We look to understand the context, why was the book of Philemon written, to whom, who wrote it? Philemon 1:1-2 says, “Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, to Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker… and to the church that meets in your home.” So, we see the book of Philemon was written by Paul to a man named Philemon who led a church in his home. Paul starts most of his letters, introducing himself as an apostle. But in this letter he says instead, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus. He’s writing as a lowly person, a dear friend of Philemon. It was written about Onesimus, who was a slave of Philemon, probably a runaway slave! Onesimus meets Paul in Rome and becomes a Christian. The purpose of Paul’s letter is to encourage Philemon to forgive Onesimus and accept him as a brother in Christ! This is a big deal! Masters generally weren’t very understanding of a runaway slave. At the least they would brand an “F” on their brow, from our word fugitive. They might do much worse things. But Paul wanted Onesimus treated much better than that!
Paul is buttering up Philemon a little: “I always thank my God and I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about your love for all his holy people, and your faith in the Lord Jesus…Your love has given me great joy and encouragement because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the Lord’s people.” Paul wants Philemon to treat Onesimus well. That’s the context.
The fourth thing we’ll do is read slowly and ask questions like what does this say about God? And what is God saying to me? We can ask, is there a sin to be avoided? Is there a promise to be claimed? Is there an example to follow? Is there a command to obey? Is there something to know about God?
The fifth thing you’ll do is pray for God to speak to you and then apply what he shows you. Let’s do that, let’s pray, “God, we ask as we study, show us more about you! Speak to us, help us listen to you and mold us to be more like Jesus. Amen.”
In verses 8-10 Paul says, “Therefore, although in Christ I could be bold and order you to do what you ought to do,” (Paul is saying, I outrank you, and I could order you to forgive Onesimus) “yet I prefer to appeal to you on the basis of love. It is as none other than Paul—an old man and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus—”(Paul is pulling on the heartstrings here,) “that I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains.” Paul says, “Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is useful.” Maybe you and I could say, “Formerly my life was one thing, but now God took that one thing I didn’t want and made it useful.” Formerly I was depressed, but now the peace of God guards my mind in Jesus. Formerly I was lost, but God found me and made me new. Reading the Bible is a way to be continually fed by God, continually changed in the likeness of Christ. To experience peace and joy in all circumstances! Formerly I was this, but God changed everything! Next week we’ll hear the rest of the story of Onesimus and Philemon, about how God’s transformative power!
My homework is for you to pick a translation, a time, place and a plan, study it and come back next week. See what God starts to do.
Studying God’s word is the greatest way to be in relationship with Him! The Bible is inspired by God, and when we study it, God changes us. Our heart is refreshed, so that we become a new creation and a blessing to others in Christ’s name. Amen.
Maureen Duffy-Guy's blog 